The webmaster of this site recently had lunch at an upscale restaurant with the CEO of a pretty substantial hotel chain. It was on a Thursday. Firmly determined to signal our success in life, none of us wore a tie. While munching away, the high profile CEO of a major listed real-estate company strolled over to say hello. He didn't wear a tie either, just a sports jacket and a multi-colored striped shirt, that was a mere notch below gaudy. He was entertaining a bunch of people, of which only one wore a dark suit and tie. That one looked like a junior account executive and probably was.
So, every day is casual Friday in Sweden .
Dark suit and tie signals that you are young and hungry. If you are clearly not young, it signals that you have failed and have to worry about how you dress.
An (expensive) sports jacket and button down shirt signals that you have made it, and are above mundane matters such as dress code. Ingvar Kamprad, the multi-billionaire founder of IKEA is widely recognized as the country's worst dressed man. But no one can match his success, except perhaps Bill Gates.
The above does not apply to ultra-conservative businesses such as banking, insurance and law. Dark suit and tie, please.
Literature on Swedish dress code
If you want to learn more about dress code in Sweden there are some books available on the tubject; Rough Guide to Sweden by James Proctor and Neil Roland plus Modern-Day-Vikings A Practical Guide to Interactiong with Swedes by Christina Johansson Robinowitz and Lisa Werner Carr. More suggestions on books are listed here on Google.
Hermès, Dior, Gucci, Yves St Laurent - artefacts from a civilisation long gone. Once proudly worn as symbols of success and financial prowess. Now just nostalgic remnants of days of glory, hidden in a dark closet that contains the author's vast collection of $100 ties.